The present invention generally relates to video processing. More specifically, the present invention relates to systems and methods for multi-source video distribution and composite display.
In many situations it is desirable to be able to display video data from more than one source on a single display screen. For example, a given operating environment may have limited space and more than one display may not be practical. As another example, a single video source may not be able to effectively utilize a large screen.
One situation in which video data streams from multiple sources may be displayed is in a healthcare environment such as an operating room for surgery or an interventional radiology suite. Current operating rooms and interventional radiology suites have a number of video screens hanging on booms or articulating arms. Typically, each video display is tied to a single information system or imaging modality. For example a typical operating room might have a Picture Archiving and Communication System (“PACS”) with 1-3 displays, an electronic medical records (“EMR”) system with one display, an ultrasound display, an acquisition workstation display, a fluoroscopy display, and a navigation display.
FIG. 1 illustrates an example of a current system for display of video data from multiple sources in an operating room. As shown in FIG. 1, video data from various sources, such as a PACS, EMR, anesthesiology, and fluoroscopy systems, may each be displayed on a dedicated screen. That is, each system generates video data to be displayed on a separate display, specific to the video source. These displays not only contribute to information overload, but also make it extremely difficult to navigate to specific information needed to make life-critical decisions.
Video distribution systems have been used by hospitals to reduce some of the extraneous display clutter. FIG. 2 illustrates an example of a current system for display of video data from multiple sources on a single screen in an operating room. As shown in FIG. 2, video data is communicated from various video sources over video cables to a video hub. The video hub is typically a hardware video router. The video hub may then allow a user to select one of the different video sources for display. That is, only one video source is shown at a time, with the video hub controlling which source is currently selected. Alternatively, the video hub may partition the display into multiple viewports and scale the video data from each video source to occupy a section of the screen. A major problem with this method of video distribution is that each information source is still displayed in its own context, and only one video source can be “active” for user interaction. That is, other viewports may display dynamic information, but the ability to interact with disparate information systems simultaneously is not supported.
However, even with the use of a video hub, information overload still occurs. Users are forced into viewing information from disparate systems in multiple viewports, or sequentially switching them in the same viewport, all in their own context, without a true integration. The user is not able to display information from each system in a user-configurable, composite fashion, and interact with it. Additionally, video routing and/or combining hardware is expensive. Further, such systems have hard limits on the number of inputs. That is, many systems cannot manage more than a fixed number of video feeds.
Thus, there exists a need for systems and methods for multi-source video distribution and composite display.